


you're my superstar

by chinarai



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Bathing/Washing, M/M, Non-Graphic Smut, Reunions, Rutting, Shiro Birthday Exchange 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-07 22:01:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17968841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chinarai/pseuds/chinarai
Summary: In which Shiro goes to Kerberos, and Keith waits for him.Kerberos is everything Shiro thought it would be and more. Space is beautiful, and on the edge of the Solar System it’s even more breathtaking. The vast expanse outside the window is something he could watch for hours, studying every single luminous dot in the distance or celestial body that passes close enough.He spends days cooped up inside the ship, just him and the Holts, going out for ice samples and running some tests and experiments with the tools they brought from Earth. Sam expresses his love for dehydrated peas every time one of them gets a packet for their meals, and Matt insists on playing a game of cards that never works out due to zero gravity. If not that, he records some footages of Shiro studying space, or Sam looking over the results of the samples to send back to the Garrison.Shiro reads a lot and works out as much as he can. The Holts taught them their secret way of communicating, so Shiro sends as many messages a day as possible to the one waiting for him back on Earth.





	you're my superstar

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mooncloaks](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mooncloaks/gifts).



> This was written for [bloomingtide](https://twitter.com/bloomingtide) as part of the [Shiro Birthday Exchange](https://twitter.com/VLDexchange)! I hope you enjoy it! And a happy birthday to my boy! 
> 
> Title's from [MARINA - Superstar.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByDHbOky47A&t=0s)

Kerberos is everything Shiro thought it would be and more. Space is beautiful, and on the edge of the Solar System it’s even more breathtaking. The vast expanse outside the window is something he could watch for hours, studying every single luminous dot in the distance or celestial body that passes close enough. 

He spends days cooped up inside the ship, just him and the Holts, going out for ice samples and running some tests and experiments with the tools they brought from Earth. Sam expresses his love for dehydrated peas every time one of them gets a packet for their meals, and Matt insists on playing a game of cards that never works out due to zero gravity. If not that, he records some footages of Shiro studying space, or Sam looking over the results of the samples to send back to the Garrison.

Shiro reads a lot and works out as much as he can. The Holts taught them their secret way of communicating, so Shiro sends as many messages a day as possible to the one waiting for him back on Earth. He knows Keith will only get to see them much later after the delay. In return, Shiro gets messages of his own. Sometimes the Garrison allows them to record a brief video for their loved ones, and other times it lets Keith and the other half of the Holt family to do the same. Seeing Keith’s face on screen as he addresses Shiro always brightens up his day, and he replays these videos every night before bed. 

They stay longer than initially planned. It had been just a year at first, but the Garrison was confident they could stay some weeks more. Now it’s time to go home. Shiro pilots their shuttle all the way back to Earth, and they appreciate the beauty of their surrounding every second of the way. Descent into Earth’s atmosphere is better than previous times due to new modifications done to all Garrison ships. It’s not smooth by any chance, but less turbulent and more bearable. 

Back in Garrison grounds, Shiro counts the days, every hour, minute and second until he gets to leave quarantine and go back home with the man he loves. The doctors run tests to check on their health, and they slowly begin to be introduced to fresh food, to walking and exercising, to living a normal life on Earth again. 

He gets to call Keith, hear his voice in real time, but can’t see him personally yet, not even through a thick glass. Shiro talks to him for as long as he can, and when phoning or video chat aren’t an option, they switch to texts. Now that he's back on Earth, the shorter distance between them becomes twice as unbearable.

It's all paid off some days later when the doctors and physicians deem them healthy enough to leave the quarantine area. With every step towards the decontamination room, his heart beats faster, and when he steps outside he sees Colleen and Katie - and Keith, who immediately runs up to him, and Shiro doesn't waste time to meet him in the middle, wrapping him up in a hug that lifts Keith's feet off the ground. 

Keith's changed since the last time they saw each other, so long ago before the Kerberos launch. He's taller, having finally hit the growth spurt that has been evading him since their teen years as cadets, and heavier with lean muscles that shift under his officer uniform. He's even more beautiful than before, somehow. Too pretty to be human. 

Shiro sets his down and takes hold of his face, presses his lips firmly to his in a kiss that he's longed to have since they left Earth’s orbit. Keith pulls away only to dive back in once, twice, then he's laying kisses on Shiro's jawline until he buries his face in the crook of his neck to breathe him in. Shiro holds on tight, fingers curled around the grey fabric of Keith’s uniform. Behind them, the Holts are having their own reunion, Colleen crying as Sam holds her. 

They may have spent days recovering from the trip, but Shiro is still tired, mostly from the surroundings. He’s eager to go home, and home is one of the Garrison-issued apartments that’s still more military than it’s cozy, but still home. Wherever he goes with Keith is home. Keith himself is his home. 

Not much has changed in their apartment, aside from the many potted plants placed about, likely Keith’s new hobby to kill time when he was alone. But Shiro doesn’t pay much attention to the decor, only drags Keith into another hug and walks them backwards to the bathroom, where the bathtub they had installed waits for them. He’s looking forward to a good soak, just sitting in hot water with his lover to relax. 

Keith peels away Shiro’s clothes with care as the tub fills up with water, lips brushing over the mark just below his collarbone, an array of stars that doesn’t depict any known constellation. It’s their own; nameless even after so long, but theirs anyway. They haven’t settled on a good name yet, and at the same time think no name will ever make it justice.  

It’s nice to lean back against Keith’s chest and let him wash his hair, fingers scratching Shiro’s scalp gently the way he likes, hands running a fluffy sponge along his arms. “What was it like up there?” Keith asks in a whisper, as if he hasn’t seen it personally, working the sponge on his shoulders.

“Amazing. Beautiful.” Shiro says just as quietly and sinks back into Keith. “I wish you could’ve been there with me.” 

“Someday,” Keith promises with a kiss to his cheek, and Shiro tells him of the things he saw, the beauty of Saturn from up close, Earth from a distance, and the innumerous stars. 

“I wanted to bring an ice sample for you,” Shiro confesses, tone mischievous, and Keith laughs into the curve of his neck. 

“I’d keep it in the freezer.” He can feel Keith’s smile on his skin, and his own curve in response. 

They step out of the tub once the water is cooler and their skin is wrinkled. Keith dries him up with a fluffy towel, and Shiro lets himself be taken care of, enjoying the gentle swipes along his body and the way Keith dries his hair with care. He’d missed this, the domesticity, Keith’s presence. He returns the favor, placing a sweet kiss on Keith’s forehead once he’s done, and one on his right shoulder blade when Keith turns around, right on top of the matching constellation. 

Funny how these things work, soulmarks. Shiro’s heard stories of soulmates that found each other in their childhood, and others that never found them at all. Some people go years without meeting their soulmate, traveling the world in relentless pursuit. Fate brought them together at the Garrison, even paired them together to share the same room with two other cadets, having Keith sleep on the bunk on top of Shiro’s bed. And Keith, for all the distance he kept from other peers, opened up some space in his life for Shiro. First roommates, then study buddies, and finally best friends.

And Shiro had been slowly, but helplessly falling for his friend with every smile, every laugh, every teasing remark. The soulmark on his chest weighed him down, held him back from pursuing anything with Keith, reminding him to stay faithful to a soulmate he hadn’t found yet, waiting for him somewhere out in the world. 

It wasn’t until he stole a glimpse at Keith changing, just the two of them in the room, ogling him when he shouldn’t, that he  _ really _ studied Keith’s soulmark and he realized they matched, every dot and line a perfect copy of his own. Heart beating quick and hard in his chest, Shiro broke the news in what could have been the dumbest, but most effective way possible: by stripping his shirt and letting Keith see the same array of stars on his chest.

It’s fitting that two boys who always wanted to reach for the stars have a constellation as their soulmark. 

Their friendship evolved quickly, but naturally. More time spent together, hoverbike racing in the dry desert heat, sparring in the gym bright and early. More physical touches, hands on shoulders, or between shoulder blades, until they settled on the curve of a lower back instead. Nights spent awake until odd hours, talking in hushed whispers to not wake the others, sharing the same space of the bed. Stargazing after dinner, sneaking up to the rooftop, sitting together to watch meteor showers, finally kissing Keith for the first time some months after the revelation under the light of a full moon.

With that press of lips, Shiro’s world turned upside down and righted itself, and when Keith cupped his jaw gently, a piece he didn’t know was missing slid into place. He’d thought it would be impossible to love Keith more, but he was wrong. The affection grew until it made him breathless, and he took Keith apart for the first time once they’d made it to their new shared officer quarters after graduation, faces flushed pink and lips tasting like a sweet fruity drink they had at the party.

Wanting to spend the rest of his life with Keith was the obvious course of action,but Shiro took too long trying to plan it, to make it perfect to make up for the tactless way he revealed himself as Keith’s soulmate, that all too soon he was called for Kerberos and was left with little time in his hands. Swapping dog tags on their last night together had felt much like an unofficial engagement, and judging by the way Keith clutched Shiro’s tags close to his chest as he left for quarantine the next morning, he felt the same.

Shiro will have to remedy that now, will find a pretty ring for Keith as soon as he can.

It’s still early for dinner. Keith suggests a cup of tea and some lounging around to catch up before they eat. Shiro looks through the cabinets as Keith heats up water to prepare Shiro’s favorite blend, and makes a triumphant noise when he noticed that Keith had replenished his not-so-secret stash of mac and cheese, depositing two boxes on the table with a loud  _ thump _ . It earns him a burst of laughter from Keith, both his hands occupied with their mugs, steam curling upwards and the smell of mint piercing the air. 

Shiro takes his mug, his favorite, chipped but well loved, the first birthday gift Keith gave him back when they were roommates. It had been more of a gag gift to go along with the real gift then, and in hindsight Keith should have known Shiro would love the cartoons dogs and cats dressed up as astronauts, drifting in space together hand in hand.

They curl up together on the couch, a fleece throw blanket around their shoulders, more to bring comfort than to stave off any cold. Keith fits perfectly into his side as they talk, and Shiro twirls a lock of dark hair around his fingers, smiling when he tugs the hair behind an ear and Keith shivers, pressing further into Shiro’s space with a little noise of protest. Keith bats his hand away playfully and leans down to reach under the couch.

“What are you doing?” Keith looks around some more, and Shiro’s eyebrows lift up when he’s given a box wrapped in bright paper, colorful balloons over a red backdrop. 

Keith wrapped it up himself, he can tell by the messy way the ends are taped closed, and oddly enough, this tiny detail means the world to Shiro. He tries to peel it open carefully, but it tears at the slightest tug, and reveals a logo, gold foil on black. Nothing that hints at anything in his mind, however, so he gives Keith a questioning glance before resuming. Keith doesn’t reveal anything. 

Box completely unwrapped, wrapping paper discarded by his bare feet, Shiro opens the top flap of the box and is greeted by bubble wrap. Lots of it. With care, he removes the bundle from within the box, unravels it until only a layer is left, gasping when he makes out what his gift truly is. By his side, Keith shifts almost anxiously, nibbling on his bottom lip.

The Calypso is an important ship to Shiro, and to Keith too. It was that historic journey that inspired him to walk this path, to try his hardest and give his best to be accepted in the Garrison, to become one of their ace pilots. It was the same for Keith, an impossible dream that could forever change the life of a boy that had lost too much too young. It was the common interest that gave the final push needed to transition from acquaintances to friends. Now, holding an official replica of that legendary ship in his hands, Shiro has no words to say.

“Do you like it?” His voice is quiet, uncertain. 

“I love it,” He replies honestly, turning the replica around to look at it from every angle. He’s seen the real ship from up close before, but this is different. “You shouldn’t have, though.”

Keith shrugs. “It was one of the few things you ever said you  _ really _ wanted.”

“Must have cost a lot.”

“And it was worth every penny.” Keith gives him a meaningful look, and Shiro’s heart bursts. He would pay anything to get Keith little indulgences, because seeing him smile is reward enough. 

Shiro sets the replica on the coffee table between the forgotten mugs of tea, both cold by now, and draws Keith in for a kiss, slow and sweet and exploratory. Unhurried, his lips move against Keith’s, licking into his mouth and capturing the minty taste of his tongue. Keith’s love confession mingles with every press of their mouths, and Shiro pulls him onto his lap, says it back with as much sincerity and feeling as he can.

Space is beautiful, but it would be much better if enjoyed with him by his side. Keith pushes him down into the cushions and follows, their hips aligning with practiced ease. Shiro wonders what it would be like to sleep among the stars with Keith, to kiss him whilst watching far away nebulae, to see stars behind his eyelids then out the window after they reach their climaxes together. 

He breathes Keith’s name into his mouth, takes hold of his hips to drive upwards, seeking that delicious friction that will topple them over the edge. Keith’s breath hitches as he comes, and Shiro arches off the couch, pulls away from his mouth to throw his head back, white exploding in his vision.

They lie to collect their breaths and calm their heartbeats, legs tangled together, Keith’s cheek mushed into his still heaving chest. “I missed you,” says Keith, and presses a kiss over Shiro’s heart through the worn cotton of his shirt. 

“I missed you too.” His arms tighten around him, pull Keith even closer, and his nose buries in the soft strands of his hair. Keith will probably need to get it cut soon. “Looking forward to the day they’ll send us in a mission together.” 

Keith hums quietly. “Me too.” 

“I wonder how Colleen and Sam do it.” 

“Colleen’s area of expertise requires her to stay on Earth.” Keith muses, voice low and slow. Shiro runs his fingers along Keith’s spine, and Keith sighs softly. “She doesn’t have to pilot anyone anywhere, or go with them for ice samples.” 

That’s true. It’s easier, and yet no less harder for the Holts, because only one has to leave from time to time. Shiro and Keith are both required to pilot missions, usually taking turns on who gets to stay behind. If they are lucky, the Garrison will have two different missions at once so they will both be occupied. In an ideal world, they will work as pilot and co-pilot, flying to the same destination together. 

“Have they given you a new mission?” 

Keith shakes his head and mumbles, barely audible. “Not for a few months, I think.” They will get to spend some time together, catch up on all he’s missed, make new memories.

It doesn’t take long for Keith’s breathing to slow, ribs expanding with each deep intake of breath. Between the warm bath, the cup of calming tea, an orgasm, and lying beneath Keith’s solid weight that brings him a feeling of comfort and safety, Shiro feels his eyelids getting heavier as well. He kisses the crown of Keith’s head, and arranges the blanket as best as he can over them. It’s good to finally be home. 

**Author's Note:**

> come chat with me on [tumblr](https://chinarai.tumblr.com/) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/chinaraii) where it's sheith hours 24/7! [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/chinarai) is now also an option!


End file.
